Background

She is the seventh in a family of nine. Her father was a teacher. She is married and has two children.[1]Education

In 1975 she started her secondary education at Dadaya High School. In 1981, she enrolled for a degree at the University of Zimbabwe and graduated with a BSc Honours in Economics in 1984. She later obtained a Masters’ degree in Economics in 1989, from the UZ and an MBA in International Banking and Finance from Birmingham University in 1995.
Joining the Second Chimurenga

When she was in Form 3, she posted back her fees and sneaked away with three of her friends to join the liberation struggle. She walked through Mberengwa, Nyamhondo, Gonarezhou to Mozambique. They rested at Mapai where she could have died of malaria. Bonyongwe was unaware of her surroundings for two days; drifting in and out of consciousness. They were then moved in the captured old Dodge trucks to XaiXai. From there they boarded buses Chimoio camp. After security checks, they were sent to Nehanda Camp for women. In an interview she said that she was there during the Chimoio attack on November 23, 1977.[1]Career

She worked for three years for the Ministry of Labour, Manpower Planning and Social Welfare — Department of Research and Planning. She worked for two years with the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) as an economist and then moved to the FINHOLD Group, now ZB Financial Holdings, as senior economist and rose through the ranks to head the group’s business development unit.

She was later moved to Syfrets Merchant Bank as a corporate finance executive and head of continental capital (a Group Venture Capital Finance Company). After seven years, she moved to the ZIMRE Group for another seven years, rising from group planning and investments manager to managing director of Fidelity Life Asset Management Company (FLAM).